* * *

The fear and anxiety of a deep, smothering dark unknown laid about Jaime like a coffin. She tried to move her body, which so far resisted all her commands to make even the slightest motion. Finally, her eyelids obeyed and slowly lifted, but then fell shut like two granite doors when the light hit her sensitive retinas.

Again Jaime forced her eyes open, their lids fluttering like hummingbird wings. She slowly turned her head to the blurry form sitting next to her. A long arm reached out and adjusted the shade on the lamp. In the softened light, Jaime could just make out the outline of a head. Gradually her vision cleared and she recognized eyes, a nose and a very strange smile.

“I’m dead.” Jaime bit her lip, never intending to say those words, but how did you fight pure fact? She was dead.

“No, you’re not,” chuckled the grinning face.

Taking a deep breath, Jaime shut her eyes. Maybe her vision would clear by the time she opened them again. Nobody has that much hair on his head!

Opening her eyes, she examined the face. It was quite gentle, except for a wide dog-like nose. An elegant fur-backed hand rose toward Jaime’s forehead. She grabbed it and examined the appendage that resembled her own except it had three fingers and a thumb with short claw-like nails. The palm side was skin like hers but a sandy-colored fur covered the top.

Jaime’s focus sharpened as her gaze traced the hand to the wrist, the elbow, and finally the shoulder. The underside of the arm was fur-less. An emerald-green tunic covered the upper body. The front of the neck was bare skin, and the oval-shaped face had gently rising cheekbones. Its lips were similar in shape to Jaime’s own, but thinner and a dusty pink. Light tufted eyebrows swept up from soft brown round eyes.

Jaime pulled herself to a sitting position, but never moved her gaze from the curious face. It was bare flesh surrounded by the same beautiful sandy fur forming an almost perfect hourglass frame to the features. The upper half swept from the cheekbones to push up and behind the ecliptic shaped ears. The rest flowed downward along the back of the neck ending in a ponytail.

* * *